Creating a pornographic “deepfake” image is to become an offence under the Criminal Justice Bill, which is going through Parliament.
The Ministry of Justice announced on Tuesday they would be amending the legislation to add the new offence to take into account advances in artificial intelligence (AI).
It was reported recently that technology is being created which would allow so-called camgirls to interact with paying customers while their faces are replaced by those of a celebrity.
But under the new legislation, anyone who creates a sexually explicit deepfake without consent will face an unlimited fine and possibly even a jail term.
The creator of the images will not have to share them in order to be legally culpable.
Concerns about deepfake images and videos were highlighted last year by the BBC drama “The Capture,” in which Papa Essiedu played a government minister who falls foul of a sinister plot by China which involves an AI clone of Mr. Essiedu giving a “Newsnight” interview in which he states a false political position.
The minister for victims and safeguarding, Laura Farris, said the creation of deepfake sexual images was “unacceptable irrespective of whether the image is shared.”
‘Capacity to Cause Catastrophic Consequences’
Ms. Farris said deepfake pornographic images had, “the capacity to cause catastrophic consequences” and would not be tolerated.She said, “This new offence sends a crystal clear message that making this material is immoral, often misogynistic, and a crime.”
It is not clear if the legislation would ban satirical or comedic images or whether there would be any legal defences available to the accused.
Deborah Joseph, European editorial director of Glamour, welcomed the new offence and said a recent survey by the women’s magazine found 91 percent of readers believed deepfake technology posed a “threat to the safety of women.”
“While this is an important first step, there is still a long way to go before women will truly feel safe from this horrendous activity,” added Ms. Joseph.
Broadcaster Cathy Newman had her face superimposed onto pornography as part of a “Channel 4 News” investigation into deepfake images and she said she found even that “incredibly invasive.”
She told BBC Radio 4’s “Today” programme, “I didn’t think I’d be too affected by it but actually when I watched it, the only way to describe it is that it was violating.”
Ms. Newman said, “It was a sort of disgusting fantasy that someone had had and decided to create of me in all sorts of different sexual positions. It was really disturbing and violating is really the best way to describe it.”
Deepfake Pornography ‘Increasing Exponentially’
Ms. Newman said, “So, we can legislate in this jurisdiction, it might have no impact on whoever created my video or the millions of other videos that are out there, and I think speed is also of the essence here because we discovered in our research that more deepfake porn videos were created in 2023 than all other years combined, so this is increasing exponentially.”Labour’s shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, welcomed the proposal and said, “Superimposing somebody’s image onto sexually explicit photos and videos is a gross violation of their autonomy and privacy, which can cause enormous harm, and it must not be tolerated.”
Ms. Cooper said, “It’s essential that the police and prosecutors are equipped with the training and tools required to rigorously enforce these laws in order to stop perpetrators from acting with impunity.”
